KALAMAZOO, Mich. – Both teams shot 50 percent or better from the field in a game that featured five ties and 14 lead changes as Western Michigan made a few more plays down the stretch to hold off the Northern Illinois University men's basketball team, 79-72, on Saturday afternoon at University Arena. 

Western Michigan shot 53.8 percent (28-of-52) from the field while NIU shot 50 percent (29-of-58), but the Broncos went 10-of-23 from behind the three-point line while the Huskies were just 5-of-18. 

Sophomore Eugene German (Gary, Ind./21st Century Charter) scored a team-high 21 points, junior Levi Bradley (Milwaukee, Wis./Pius XI) had 20 points and junior Dante Thorpe (Washington, D.C./Triton College) also reached double figures with 10 points. 

"We battled for 40 minutes," said NIU head coach Mark Montgomery. "I thought we outplayed Western (Michigan) in the first half, we had some bad bounces at the end and didn't close the half like we should have and we were down four, but we played well. We took care of the ball in the first half, only had four turnovers, only 10 for the game.

"In the second half, we battled, they hit a NBA three, we had a couple late fouls when the shot clock was running down. We held them in check on the glass the whole game, but when it was crunch time we didn't get the stops, that's what hurt us."

Western Michigan (12-9, 4-4 MAC) led through the first 12 minutes of the contest, with its advantage reaching as much as five, 15-10. The turnovers were nearly even, with NIU committing 10 and Western Michigan committing nine, but the Huskies converted WMU's miscues into just 11 points while NIU's 10 turnovers became 20 points for the Broncos. 

A triple from German and a layup from freshman Owen Hamilton (Prescott, Wis./Prescott) brought the Huskies back even, 15-15, and Thorpe extended the run to seven with a basket to give the Huskies their first lead of the afternoon with 7:17 to play before halftime. 

After a bucket by the Broncos pushed Western Michigan back in front, sophomore Noah McCarty (Rock Falls, Ill./Sterling Newman) scored twice on offensive rebounds and Bradley made a layup on a drop-off from German as the Huskies took a 23-18 lead with 4:29 to play in the half. 

McCarty finished with eight points and six rebounds, including five boards on the offensive end. 

The NIU lead was still five, 27-22, when Western Michigan used a 9-0 run in the final 1:40 of the half to take a four-point lead, 31-27, into halftime. 

NIU (10-11, 3-5 MAC) scored seven of the first nine out of the intermission to take a one-point lead. A triple from Bradley and a put back from junior Lacey James (Grand Rapids, Mich./Rider) gave the huskies a 34-33 lead early in the second half.  

The lead swung back-and-forth between the two teams with Thorpe pushing the Huskies back in front, 55-54, just before the midway point of the half. Western Michigan then converted a five-point play as the Huskies were called for a flagrant foul and the Broncos hit both free throws and a triple, taking a 59-55 lead. 

With Western Michigan still up by four, James made a pair from the charity stripe to trim the Bronco lead back to a pair with 5:34 left. Western Michigan scored the next five to push the lead to seven, 69-62. 

The Huskies cut the lead back to five on three-straight possessions, but each time Western Michigan had an answer as NIU couldn't cut into the lead going into the final minute. The Broncos went 6-of-6 from the free-throw line in the final 75 seconds as they held off the Huskies, 79-72.

NIU shot 61.5 percent (16-of-26) from the field in the second half while Western Michigan shot 60 percent (15-of-25). 

All five starters for the Broncos scored in double figures, led by 25 points from Thomas Wilder. Josh Davis added 15, Brandon Johnson scored 13, Drake LaMont chipped in 12 and Bryce Moore scored 11 points for WMU, who got just three points from its bench in the contest. 

The Huskies will be back in the State of Michigan on Tuesday night, Jan. 30, when they travel to Central Michigan. NIU will return home on Saturday, Feb. 3, when the Huskies host Miami (Ohio) at 3:30 p.m. Tickets are on sale now through the NIU Athletics Ticket Office in the Convocation Center, by calling 815-753-PACK (7225) or online at NIUHuskies.com. Reserved lower bowl seats are just $10 while general admission is available for $8.